AND ANIMAL LIFE. 281 



CCC. In individuals of a purely nervous con- 

 stitution, the parietes of the heart, its valves 

 or vessels, are seldom much disorganized ; but pa- 

 tients who have been long troubled with such 

 complaints are remarked to die frequently of 

 Phthisis ; and in those cases in which we cannot 

 discover the efficient cause of death, we observe, 

 on dissection, the traces of chronic disease of the 

 thorax and abdomen, such as congested or tu- 

 berculous lungs, indurated or enlarged liver, vas- 

 cular or thickened appearance of the stomach, 

 or adhesions in some parts of these cavities. We 

 shall now investigate the causes which determine 

 palpitation, and endeavour to explain the various 

 kinds of disorganizations, either co-existent with, 

 or subsequent to such an affection. 



CCCI. An individual, from the preponder- 

 ance of the nervous temperament,* is prone to 

 receive slight external impressions ; shadows 

 seem tangible ; ordinary sounds are deemed ano- 

 malous or strange, and the different senses ap- 

 pear to acquire additional acuteness. The con- 

 tinued operation of these causes predisposes the 

 system to organic changes, or functional derange- 

 ments. The frame is emaciated, the cheek loses 

 the glow of health, the mind its usual buoyancy, 

 and the appetite becomes fastidious. The men- 

 tal anxiety which he suffers, the inactivity of 



* I continue the use of this term, as it conveys to the mind 

 of the reader the character of the constitution particularly 

 predisposed to palpitation. 



